A DUBLIN hospital using music and TV to calm children undergoing X-rays and CT scans has said it is an effective alternative to sedation.
The National Children’s Hospital, Tallaght, allows children to listen to music or watch specially selected TV programmes on a portable media player. With the scanning procedure being a potentially strange or frightening experience for some children, the portable media players distract and calm them.
By reducing stress and anxiety during the scan, the method also avoids the need for sedation in many cases which means the use of a ward bed is also avoided. This in turn has reduced patient waiting times.
Speaking about the procedure used with patients aged two to 16, nursery nurse at the hospital, Danielle Smyth, said that with each scan lasting about 15 minutes, the media player acts as an “effective alternative to sedation”.
Ms Smyth said the initial results of the trial in which more than 100 children have listened to music or watched TV during a scan were “very encouraging”.
Since their introduction a year ago, the portable media players, either held by the child or mounted on the scanning equipment, are now being used during regular X-rays, ultrasounds and CT scans. The nurse pre-selects music and TV programmes with current favourites including High School Musical, Peppa Pig and Harry Potter.
Dr Sarah Barrett said: “Use of the device means we are able to see more patients over shorter periods of time.”
A spokeswoman for Temple Street children’s hospital said it also had a music library for children but with its rooms wired for sound, children were also invited to bring their own choice of music or movies to be played during X-ray and ultrasound procedures.
